Oil heater



2 Sheets-Sheet 1 J. c. BLACK OIL HEATER 4Filed April s, 19:54

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Dec. 31, 1935.

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5 arranged Patented Dec. 3l, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE OIL HEATER John C. Black, Beverly Hills, Calif. Application April il, 1934, Serial No. 719,658

1 Claim.

l0 such as petroleum oil to be distilled or cracked,

flows counter-current or concurrent to the flow of combustion gases.

In my United States Patent #1,806,036, patented May 17, 1931, for Process for distilling and cracking petroleum oils, there are shown in the "drawing two forms of oil heater, one designated by the numeral 95, in which the flow of oil through connected tubes is rrst counter-current and then concurrent to the flow of combustion gases passing through the furnace. Also, in my United in the drawing an oil heater with a double furnace, in which the flow of oil through the connected tubes or coil in both furnaces is generally concurrent to the flow of combustion gases.

Therefore, in furnaces of this type it is necessary to use relatively largeamounts of cool air with the combustion products to prevent overheating and destruction of the outer rows of tubes, whereby excess amounts of fuel are required to heat the excess air introduced, which could be utilized in the heating of the oil if this excess air introduced could be eliminated.

Now I have discovered that the radiant heat from the heated surface in furnaces may be more eiiiciently utilized for heating fluids passing through pipe coils in furnaces of the aforesaid type, and the employment of excessive amounts of air eliminated to a high extent, by stationing and connecting tubes in the furnace so that the entering coldest fluid passes first through all the rows of connected tubes nearest the side 'Valls or the heated brick surfaces of the furnace, and thereafter through f Derature in the tubes or connected tubes stationed the remaining connected tubes stationed near the center of the furnace, whereby a higher rate of heat exchange is effected between the side walls of the furnace and the oil passing through the said tubes without overheating the same, and without destruction or injury thereof.

An object of the invention is to provide an oil heater for heating fluids such as hydrocarbon oil, consisting of a furnace with connected tubes therein, stationed so that the radiant heat from the side walls of the furnace may be emciently utilized for heating fluid passing therethrough without destructive or injurious action to the tubes, and without requiring the mixing of excessive amounts of cold air with the products of combustion.

Another object of the invention is to provide a furnace for heating fluids passing through con' nected tubes stationed in a furnace with a minimum consumption of fuel.

Another object of the invention is to efficiently utilize radiant heat from heated surfaces of a furnace in conjunction with heat of convection from combustion gases to heat a :fluid passing through connected tubes in said furnace without injury to the tubes nearest the heated surfaces.

Another object of the invention is to devise apparatus for heating petroleum oil by a combination of radiant and convection heat;- wherein the oil may be raised to a cracking temperature diuing its 4passage through connected tubes in a furnace, wherein the tendency for super-` heating the oil beyond a desired cracking temimmediately adjacent to the radiant surfaces is minimized or completely eliminated, whereby deposition of carbonaceous material is minimized and fouling of the tubes prevented, with resultant minimum increase of y to progressive fouling of the tubes under continuous operation of the apparatus, and wherein the heat economy and -heat distribution is at a maximum.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will now be more fully explained by reference to the accompanying drawings. Fig. 1 is a sectional view on section line l-I of Fig. 2 of an elevation of the front end of a furnace and showing an end view of the coil stationed therein. Figure 2 is a longitudinal side view of the coil in the furnace. In the drawings similar numbers represent similar parts.

In the drawings, I is a setting of the furnace, the upper section of which is supported by arch 2, 3 and 3' are the side walls of the fumace connected tubes 1.

which radiate heat, principally to the outer rows of connected tubes' and 6'. l represents the inner rows of connected tubes, which are heated principally by heat of convection or contact with the products of combustion.

4 is a fire box in said furnace, and 5 is an arch supporting the tube section. 8 indicates the fluid or oil inlet pipe, 9 the outlet pipe, l0 a pipe connecting the outer rows of connected tubes 6 to 6', and Il a pipe connecting the outer row of connected tubes 6 to the inner rows of connected tubes l.

The course of the fluid to be heated, or heated an'd processed, such, for example, as the cracking of petroleum oil, through these connected tubes, is as shown by the arrows, the cool fluid or oil entering the heater through pipe 8 and passing through the row of connected tubes 6 nearest the side walls on one side of the furnace, in a general counter-current direction to the ow of combustion gases, to the bottom of the tube compartment.

A cross connection l0, stationed at the front of the tube compartment, preferably within the path of the heating gases, connects the outer row of connected tubes 6 to the outer row of connected tubes 6', so that the fluid or oil, after passing to the bottom of the first row of connected tubes 6, passes through this cross connection and then upward through the second outer row of connected tubes 6', in a general concurrent direction to the ow of combustion gases.

During the passage of the fluid or oil through these outer` rows of connected tubes, radiant heat from the furnace walls, in conjunction with convection heat from combustion gases, heats the fluid passing therethrough, which may be to or near a. cracking temperature in case an oil cracking operation is being carried out.

From the last tube of the row of tubes 6', the heated iluid or oil passes through the cross connection pipe H and into the bottom row of From the bottom row of connected tubes 1 the heated fluid or oil flows upward in succession through the various rows of connected tubes in a general concurrent direction to the fiow of combustion gases, and is therein further heated or maintained at required processing temperatures, principally by convection heat transmitted from products of combustion, generated in fire box by burning fuel such as oil or a hydrocarbon gas.

The heated fluid or processed oil passes from the last row of connected tubes through outlet pipe 9, which may be connected to vaporizing and fractionating equipment of any standard type, and the operation completed o/ methods Known in the art, such as the separation of gasoline stock from cracked petroleum oil products.

The operation of the oil heater thus described for heating a fluid or processing petroleum oil for the production of cracked petroleum oil products may be at any suitable pressures required, such for example as pressures ranging from atmospheric to as high as 1500 pounds gauge or higher, depending upon the iluid being processed and the product desired.

While the processand apparatus herein described are well adapted for carrying out the objects of the present invention, it is to be understood that various modifications and changes may be made Without departing from the spirit of the invention, and the invention includes all such modifications and changes as come within the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

An apparatus for heating uids which comprises a furnace with means for producing corn-V bustion gases therein, said furnace having walls arranged to emit radiant heat during operation of the furnace, a vertical row of horizontal tubes connected in series on each of two opposite sides of the furnace and each in close proximity to onev of said walls, having their lower ends connected together by a tube lying in the path of the combustion gases, horizontal tubes connected in series in horizontal rows, said horizontal rows being connected in vertical series and said horlzontal rows lying between said vertical rows and in the upper section of the furnace, an inlet tube at the top of one vertical row of tubes, a tube' connecting the top of the other vertical row with the bottom row of said horizontal tubes and an exit tube from the top row of said horizontal rows.

JOI-IN C. BLACK. 

